Is Procrastination a Sign of Depression? What You Need to Know
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When you are depressed, you don’t feel like doing anything. You may experience fatigue and low energy, which in turn affect your motivation to get things done.
There is definitely a link between procrastination and depression, as shown in numerous studies.
But what is the nature of the link between the two? What gives rise to the other? Is procrastination just another symptom of depression, or is it a contributing factor?
Procrastination is not clinically recognized as a sign of depression. However, symptoms of depression, including lack of energy, loss of interest in normal activities, and trouble concentrating, all lead to procrastination.
So, procrastination is a consequence or effect of depression, and the more severe the depression, the worse the procrastination may become.
Well, whether procrastination is a cause, a sign, or a consequence of depression, there is still much debate on how depression affects procrastination and vice versa.
Many studies have been done to investigate the relationship between the two, and some of these studies have led to interesting results.
These results can give you some insight into your own situation and provide some solutions to help deal with procrastination and depression at the same time.
We also provide a highly reliable depression test that measures the severity of depression.
Is There a Link Between Procrastination and Depression?
Yes, research has found significant relationship between procrastination and depression, but the nature of this relationship is debated among researchers.
Some believe that the link between procrastination and depression is like chicken and egg.
Depression can cause fatigue and a loss of interest in many activities. As a result, depressed people tend to avoid or procrastinate on even the most basic daily tasks.
This avoidance or procrastination can exacerbate depressive thoughts and negative emotions, as well as cause additional rumination and emotional conflict as a result of postponing important tasks.
On the other hand, procrastination can also cause problems in relationships and in the workplace.
All of these things can make depressive symptoms worse, especially if you are already at risk.
And the loop feeds off itself.
Depression can cause procrastination in many ways.
In fact, one of the major signs of depression is a lack of interest in activities that you usually like to do. So, you tend to avoid all kinds of activities, especially those that require mental or physical effort.
Depression causes a loss of energy and fatigue. You feel sluggish and unmotivated to do anything, not even pleasurable activities. This avoidance is a direct consequence of depression and usually leads to worsening procrastination.
Depression also causes trouble thinking and focusing and problems with memory and reasoning, which affect the way you process information, set goals, and organize your life. You feel less focused and somewhat dazed, and your mental energy is easily depleted.
Research found that students who are depressed experience negative repetitive thoughts (rumination) that can contribute to procrastination.
Depression also erodes your confidence and self-esteem and makes you doubt your capacity to accomplish things. So, you tend to avoid doing challenging tasks because you believe you will eventually fail.
Depression can also make you shy away from people and avoid doing things with other people, like talking on the phone or going to meetings.
As you see, there are many ways depression can affect procrastination and overall productivity in your life. But it is still a complex relationship that can be viewed as part of a vicious cycle that feeds off itself.
Does Depression Cause Procrastination?
Yes, depression can contribute to procrastination or make it worse. The physical and mental symptoms of depression, such as fatigue, lack of interest in normal activities, and the inability to focus, can all contribute to procrastination.
However, this is not always the case; some depressed people can maintain their normal routines, such as going to work, finishing chores, and performing daily tasks. This is especially true for people with high-functioning depression, which has less severe symptoms of depression.
Although procrastination is not a clinically recognized cause of depression, it can exacerbate the symptoms. There seems to be a depression-procrastination cycle that feeds off itself.
Many studies show that procrastination is associated with psychological distress and depression. Researchers believe that procrastinators are more vulnerable to depression.
Procrastination, according to researchers, is also linked to negative repetitive thoughts and rumination. These negative thoughts are known to contribute to depression.
For example, you struggle mentally to start your school project. And you may say to yourself,
“I should start today” … “But I am tired today” … “Let’s leave it for tomorrow” … “But why do I keep delaying this important project?”…. “Why am I so undisciplined?”…. “What if I fail my academic year because of that?”
These repetitive thoughts may contribute to or worsen depression. In turn, depression makes you less motivated to work on your project, but keeps you ruminating over it, which causes more depression.
And the loop goes on.
Procrastination causes you to be inactive; you avoid working out, cleaning your room, starting your school project, and so on.
And lack of activity is known to worsen the symptoms of depression.
A procrastinator may also choose to delay going to a doctor when they feel depressed. If they ignore their symptoms for an extended period of time, their depression may progress to severe major depression.
How to Overcome Depression and Procrastination?
Depending on the severity of your depression, you can either seek professional help or do behavioral activation technique to break the vicious cycle of depression-procrastination.
You can take our test, which is based on the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), to determine if you have symptoms of depression.
This questionnaire is one of the most popular psychometric tests for assessing the severity of depression.
1. Seek professional help.
If you have been feeling depressed for a long time, like weeks or months, you should probably see a doctor.
This is because you can’t get over depression by yourself; you need professional help. I’ve learned this lesson the hard way.
Please see a doctor if you have persistent signs of depression, such as feeling sad, tired, lacking energy, anxious, restless, having trouble focusing, or having trouble sleeping.
Once you get your depression under control and your mood is stable, your procrastination may resolve on its own.
When you are depressed, procrastination is just a by-product. This is why it is important to first deal with depression before anything else.
If you have been feeling depressed for a long time, like weeks or months, you should probably see a doctor.
If you have a problem with your mental health but you are hesitant to ask for help in person, there is specialized online therapy available with licensed therapists.
According to the American Psychological Association, teletherapy is just as effective as in-person sessions for treating a wide range of mental health conditions, including depression and anxiety disorders.
One of the leading online therapy platforms you can try is Talk Space, which includes a wide network of licensed providers covering a broad range of mental health specialties, including major depressive disorder.
2. Behavioral activation (one of the most well-researched and effective techniques).
If you, like the rest of us, experience normal or occasional low mood and believe it is affecting your productivity, I have a great strategy for you.
This strategy can not only improve your productivity and get you to accomplish your tasks, but it can also tremendously improve your mood and your overall outlook in life.
It is called behavioral activation, and it is part of cognitive-behavioral therapy.
Scientists have shown that this method is one of the most effective ways to deal with depression.
The good news is that it is quite simple to implement and is also very helpful in improving your overall productivity level.
How it works:
Well, here is a simplified version of the technique:
- First, grab a pen and paper and write down all the tasks and activities that you need to do. (Make your bed, go for a haircut, do 5 minutes of stretching, etc.)
- Break these activities into smaller, more manageable chunks.
- Rate each task in terms of difficulty, from 0 to 10, then rank them from easiest to hardest.
- Starting with the easiest tasks, schedule them throughout the week. You can use a planner app, like Todoist, which is a free app and a great tool for organizing to-do lists, planning tasks and tracking habits.
- Every time you finish a task, write down how you felt and rate your mood (from 1 to 10).
- Keep going from easy to difficult, and reward yourself each time you complete a big task.
This simple technique will make you more aware of how completing simple tasks positively affects your mood and makes you feel better about yourself.
This routine will gradually make you feel better and give you the drive to keep taking on more challenging tasks.
I myself tried this technique when I was suffering from bouts of depression and I can attest how effective it is in elevating mood and improving productivity.
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